Todd Hernandez set to be dual coach, take over Eaton baseball program

» He is an Eaton alum, playing under hall of fame coach Jim Danley before graduating in 1991.

» He is also the Reds’ girls basketball coach, going in to his 11th year with that position. With Hernandez in charge, Eaton has gone 169-41 the past eight seasons with three trips to the final four, including two runner-up finishes.

» Hernandez takes over a Reds program that went 20-3 last spring but went 0-2 in the state tournament and struggled with a young squad over the summer.

Eaton athletic director Steve Longwell, principal Mark Naill and the rest of a five-person search community didn't have to search far to find the Reds' next baseball coach.

Of all places, they found their next baseball coach on the basketball court.

After officially reopening the job held last season by Bob Ervin and held by Jim Danley the previous 44 years, Eaton concluded a multi-month process by hiring Todd Hernandez, who is entering his 11th year coaching the Reds' girls basketball program.

Hernandez was officially hired during an Eaton Re-2 School District Board of Education meeting Monday.

"I'm extremely excited," said Hernandez, 43. "It's one of those things that has always been a dream of mine. I played baseball at Eaton since I was 5 years old. And having my dad coach here and those kind of things, it's just always been something that I hoped would happen eventually down the line, and I'm really excited for the opportunity."

Hernandez has regularly helped out with Eaton's summer program throughout the years.

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Todd's father, Martin, was a longtime Danley assistant before he died in 2003. Todd grew up within the Reds baseball program, graduating from high school in 1991.

Hernandez didn't pursue the job a year ago after Danley was let go. But when the job reopened July 20 after Ervin, who was Danley's assistant for 36 years, decided to retire, Hernandez jumped at the opportunity after extensive conversation with his family.

"What it came down to was me and my family sitting down talking about it," said Hernandez, who also teaches fifth grade at Benjamin Eaton Elementary. "We're pretty strong in our faith. So, we prayed about it. My wife and I said, 'if this is meant to be, we'll pray about it and if God opens the door for us, we'll go that way.' "

Hernandez draws support from his wife, Lisa, his sons, Mason (a high school sophomore) and Grant (a sixth-grader), and his young daughter, Lucy (a kindergarten student).

Although Longwell said several other candidates were considered during the hiring process, he and the rest of the search committee were firmly on board with the idea of Hernandez leading the Reds' program into the future.

"He builds rapport with the kids, he builds good, positive relationships with them and he gets the best out of them," Longwell said. "Being around him the last 11, 12 years, I've seen what kind of work ethic he has. I've seen how much time he puts in. … He's your prototypical Eaton Red."

Hernandez has spent the past decade positioning the Eaton girls basketball program as an annual contender in Class 3A.

In the past eight years, the Reds, under Hernandez, have gone 169-41 with three trips to the final four, including two runner-up finishes.

When Longwell, Naill and company made it clear to Hernandez they would allow him to continuing coaching basketball while taking over the baseball program, Hernandez's interest was piqued.

"That was a big piece for me, looking in to it when I did apply," Hernandez said. "I would have an extremely hard time stepping away from those girls. They're like family to me. I always call them my basketball daughters."

Considering there is an overlap in the end of the winter basketball postseason and the beginning of spring baseball practices, Hernandez will have to do some juggling to manage both jobs.

With that said, he'll rely on some assistance from his reliable basketball coaching staff, as well as his to-be-named baseball coaching staff.

As for that first day of baseball practice Feb. 29, Hernandez is focused on building upon Eaton's rich tradition rather than trying to reinvent the program altogether.

"You look at Eaton's success they've had in the past under coach Danley and coach Ervin, they've done a lot of good things," Hernandez said. "So, I just want to come in and be who I am as a coach. I believe you can play the game of baseball the right way. You play it hard with a lot of fundamentals, but at the same time, it's a game you can have a lot of fun with."

The Todd Hernandez file

» Hernandez, 43, was hired Monday to be Eaton’s new baseball coach.

» He is an Eaton alum, playing under hall of fame coach Jim Danley before graduating in 1991.

» He is also the Reds’ girls basketball coach, going in to his 11th year with that position. With Hernandez in charge, Eaton has gone 169-41 the past eight seasons with three trips to the final four, including two runner-up finishes.

» Hernandez takes over a Reds program that went 20-3 last spring but went 0-2 in the state tournament and struggled with a young squad over the summer.